Container closure

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to an improvement of a container closure comprising a container provided with an open-topped cylindrical neck member and a cap member provided with a skirt portion and removably mounted on the neck member. A plurality of circumferentially spaced annular grooves are provided in either the outer wall of the neck member or the inner wall of the cap member, and a plurality of projections receivable in the grooves are formed on the other of these walls. At least one of the cap member and the container is made of relatively elastic material.

United States Patent 3,292,807 12/1966 Golde FOREIGN PATENTS 424,514 5/1967 Switzerland 215/41 Primary Examiner-George T. Hall Attorney-Dawson, Tilton, Fallon and Lungmus ABSTRACT: The present invention relates to an improvement of a container closure comprising a container provided with an open-topped cylindrical neck member and a cap member provided with a skirt portion and removably mounted on the neck member. A plurality of circumferentially spaced annular grooves are provided in either the outer wall of the neck member or the inner wall of the cap member, and a plurality of projections receivable in the grooves are formed on the other of these walls. At least one of the cap member and the container is made of relatively elastic material.

CONTAINER CLOSURE The present invention relates to a container closure, more particularly to an improvement in a combination of a cap member and a neck member of the container wherein said cap member is removably mounted on the neck member by means of elastic engagement of an engaging projection and countergroove each which is formed on the internal periphery of said cap member or the outer periphery of said neck member.

According to the most simple and conventional types of container closures, the cap member is adapted to be removably screwed into the neck member of the container, or the cap member being adapted to be mounted on the neck member by removably engaging projections with the outergroove of the container. There are found some defaults, however, that, for example, a considerable handworked labor is usually required for removing the cap member from neck member of the said typed container in the former. In addition, the liquid, fluid or the like contained in the container may leak out from screw thread thereof, so that said kind of container may be insanitary. Further, in the latter, that is, the said typed container provided with the projections and the countergroove a considerable strong handworked force is required for removing said cap member from the neck member, so that the liquid, fluid or the like contained in the container may leak out therefrom due to a shock caused bring about when remove the cap member.

An object of the present invention exist in removing the aforesaid defaults and providing a novel container closure.

The further object of the present invention exists in providing a container closure of which cap member thereof is able to easily remove from the opening or neck member of the container provided with the most simple construction.

The other objects and advantages of the present invention will be readily understood from the following detailed description with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of the container closure in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a cross section taken along the line II-Il in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a cross section of the other embodiment in the container closure according to the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of a modified embodiment of the present invention is which an improved inner cap is used; and

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of said inner cap as shown in FIG. 4.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a container closure comprises a top-opened neck member 1 of a bottlelike container 2 being applicable to various kinds of liquid, fluid or the like and a cap member 3 having a skirt portion 4 and adapted to removably mounted on said neck member I. Said container and the cap member may desirably be made of suitable thermoplastic resinous material, e.g. vinyl chloride, polyethylene or the like, and at least one of which may be made of elastic material such, for example, as elastic vinyl chloride, polyethylene or the like. In the preferred embodiment the container 2 is formed of rigid thermoplastic material such as vinyl chloride, while the cap member 3 may be made of the relatively soft and elastic material.

An annular horizontal groove 5 provided with a plurality of dams 6 (herein shown four only) spaced apart from each other is formed on the outer periphery of said neck member 1. Corresponding to the annular groove 5 a plurality of projections 7 (herein shown four only) horizontally spaced apart from each other are formed on the inner periphery of the said skirt portion 4 of the cap member 3. The said projections 7 of the cap 3 are elastically engaged with said annular groove 5 due to elasticity of material thereof, whereby said cap member 3 is removably mounted on the neck member 2 of said container 1 while closing the opening 8 of the container as shown in FIG. 1.

To ensure sealing of the container, in the preferred embodiment an additional inner cap member 9 is further removably mounted on the opening 8.

In connection with above, when said cap member 3 is somewhat rotated said projections 7 of the cap 3 are to ride on the dams of the said annular groove 5, so that the engagement of the projections with the groove will be easily released. Thus, the cap member is easily capable of removing from the container by upwardly withdrawing thereof.

FIG. 3 shows the other embodiment of the container closure in accordance with the present invention of which members are similar to the corresponding them in FIG. 2, but the dams and projections are in numbers thereof three. It will be found that the embodiment also effects similar function and advantages to those of the foregoing first embodiment.

For more improving closing effect and advantage thereof, a unique additional inner cap member 14 is substituted for the said cap member 9 as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5. Said inner cap member 10 is made of thermoplastic resinous material being rich in elasticity such, for example, as elastic vinyl chloride, polyethylene or the like and comprises a circular upper plate portion 11 and a cylindrical double wall portion 12 downwardly projected integrally from the back surface of said upper plate portion 11. The said double wall portion 12 comprises a thick inner wall 12A, a thinner outer wall 12B and a space 13 interposed therebetween, said space having an opening 14 at upper end thereof. The outer diameter of the said outer wall 128 is slightly larger than inner diameter of the opening of neck member 1 of the container.

As the aforesaid inner cap 14 is put into the opening of the neck, said thinner. outer wall 128 will be forcibly compressed so far as concerned only in the difference between diameters of the outer wall 128 and opening of the neck member 1. Consequently, only the dimension of the outer wall 12B will be inwardly and uniformly reduced without causing bring about undesirable deformation and compression of the inner wall 12A, since the outer wall 12B is more thinner, in thickness, than the inner wall 12A.

Having thus described in detail typical embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to such embodiments only but may also reside in all of substitutions, alternations and equivalents which are involved in the scope of principle of the present invention as set forth in the claims and the spirit of the invention.

lclaim:

1. In combination, a container and a container closure, the container including a generally cylindrical open neck portion having an outer wall, the outer wall being provided with a plurality of circumferentially spaced arcuately extending annular grooves, the container closure comprising a top cap portion and a downwardly extending generally cylindrical skirt portion having an inner wall, the inner wall including a plurality of circumferentially spaced radially inwardly extending projections receivable in the annular grooves whereby the container closure may be removably secured to the neck portion by inserting the projections into the annular grooves and may be removed by rotating the container closure relative to the neck portion to bring the projections into engagement with the portions of the outer wall of the neck between the grooves.

2. The structure of claim 1 in which the container is formed of relatively rigid material and the cap is formed of relatively elastic material.

3. In combination, a container and a container closure, the container closure comprising a top cap portion and a downwardly extending generally cylindrical skirt portion having an inner wall, the inner wall being provided with a plurality of circumferentially spaced arcuately extending annular grooves therein, the container including a generally cylindrical open neck portion having an outer wall, the outer wall including a plurality of circumferentially spaced radially outwardly extending projections receivable in the annular grooves whereby the container closure may be removably secured to the neck portion by inserting the projections into the annular grooves and may be removed by rotating the container closure relative to the neck portion to bring the projections into engagement with the portions of the inner wall of the skirt portion between the grooves.

4. The structure of claim 3 in which the container is formed of relatively rigid material and the cap is formed of relatively elastic material. 

1. In combination, a container and a container closure, the container including a generally cylindrical open neck portion having an outer wall, the outer wall being provided with a plurality of circumferentially spaced arcuately extending annular grooves, the container closure comprising a top cap portion and a downwardly extending generally cylindrical skirt portion having an inner wall, the inner wall including a plurality of circumferentially spaced radially inwardly extending projections receivable in the annular grooves whereby the container closure may be removably secured to the neck portion by inserting the projections into the annular grooves and may be removed by rotating the container closure relative to the neck portion to bring the projections into engagement with the portions of the outer wall of the neck between the grooves.
 2. The structure of claim 1 in which the container is formed of relatively rigid material and the cap is formed of relatively elastic material.
 3. In combination, a container and a container closure, the container closure comprising a top cap portion and a downwardly extending generally cylindrical skirt portion having an inner wall, the inner wall being provided with a plurality of circumferentially spaced arcuately extending annular grooves therein, the container including a generally cylindrical open neck portion having an outer wall, the outer wall including a plurality of circumferentially spaced radially outwardly extending projections receivable in the annular grooves whereby the container closure may be removably secured to the neck portion by inserting the projections into the annular grooves and may be removed by rotating the container closure relative to the neck portion to bring the projections into engagement with the portions of the inner wall of the skirt portion between the grooves.
 4. The structure of claim 3 in which the container is formed of relatively rigid material and the cap is formed of relatively elastic material. 